Stolen Time
by Karista N
Summary: When Lulu's reunited with a familliar face, things aren't exactly what they seem...and why is Rikku the only one who's noticing Auron's strange behavior? Complete.
1. Loner

Notes: The Al Bhed used in this story comes from using the Al Bhed/English translator at  
  
http://pixelscapes.com/twoflower/albhed.html  
  
so if it's not completely accurate, that's probably why.  
  
Standard Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy X/10 material is property of Squaresoft. I don't own it...but I sure as hell wish I did.  
  
The better disclaimer: This story will contain lemon (mature sexual content) and should be read with caution. It also may contain harsh language and some violence, so be advised. I warned you, don't yell when you read something you shouldn't. No real spoilers as I'm sort of stuck on Mt. Gagazet getting my ass pounded (not that kind, you perv) by Seymour.  
  
Punctuation:  
  
/.../ thoughts  
  
*...* sound effects  
  
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Chapter 1 - Loner  
  
*click*click*snap*  
  
Rikku stood on the edge of a Mt. Gagazet cliff, securing her newly acquired Hot Knuckles and NulFrost Targe, ready to tackle anything frozen that Seymour sent her way. She turned back to where the others were packing up. Lulu was commanding her mog doll to load up her belongings while Wakka was engaging in a snowball fight with Tidus. Yuna watched with amusement as Kimahri cast his stern, watchful gaze over the group from a nearby ledge. He was always cautious, but his latest encounter with his Ronso brethren had made him even stronger. Rikku supposed this strength was contributing to the fact that he always watched over them...now that he was more powerful, they had become all the more weak to him.  
  
She dodged a wayward snowball flung by Tidus and scampered up the ledge to sit at the Ronso's feet. "Are you glad you came?" she asked, looking up at the beast. "Kimahri glad...met brothers...won back pride." he replied in his gruff monotone, not bothering to look down at the small girl by his feet. She smiled and leaned back against one furry blue leg as she watched the others. Lulu sat surveying the antics of Tidus, Yuna, and Wakka as they attempted to build a snowman. Suddenly, Rikku noticed that no one was working any longer...everyone was ready to go, but they weren't leaving.  
  
Hopping down from the ledge, she ran over to the others in time for a snowball to graze her left ear. Wakka snickered as he ducked behind the snowman. Rikku grabbed a fistful of snow and gave chase, catching up to her fellow guardian and stuffing a generous amount down his pants. "Rikku! That's cold! It was a joke, ya?!" Wakka protested, shaking bits of white powder from his shorts. Lulu stood and walked between the two to prevent further confrontation, giving Wakka a stern yet slightly amused look as he danced about trying to warm his nether-regions back up. "We're waiting for Sir Auron to return..." Lulu commented, almost as if she could read Rikku's mind. Yes, Auron...always going off to mysterious places alone, never talking, and always stern...that Auron. Funny how the one who was supposed to be most responsible in the group was also the one always wandering off on his own.  
  
/I'm tired of hearing about him wandering off...I'm gonna see what's up.../  
  
Rikku patted Wakka on the back and walked back to where Kimahri was. She glanced back to make sure no one was looking and then dashed off away from the camp. Plodding through large snowdrifts, she found Auron's trademark boot prints and followed them. She came upon a small cave with a strange glow coming from inside. She peered down into it and found Auron watching a sphere. He was absorbed in whatever it was appearing before him and took no notice of the blonde head peering down at him from above the cave entrance. She watched a moment longer until the wind died down and she could hear. The sound coming from the sphere seemed a cacophony of human sighs and moans. It was then that she realized that neither of his hands was outside his cloak.  
  
Blushing, Rikku sat back up and leaned against the rocks.  
  
/Was he just doing what I thought...? No, this is Auron...not some teenage boy..../  
  
She sat there for a moment longer before she realized that it was now she who was being watched. Auron glared down at her, dark glasses covering the cold gaze that Rikku knew undoubtedly knew was there. She looked up a little sheepishly, "Hiya Auron...." she swallowed hard, trying not to show any of the embarrassment that was welling up inside her. "People go off alone to be alone..." he growled, stepping over her and walking back toward camp.  
  
/*gulp* He knows I was watching..../  
  
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Yeah, first chapter is a little short…but I just wanted to establish the theme. Chapter 2 coming…later? 


	2. Eyes Lie

Notes: This would've been up sooner, but they apparently had a problem with another one of my stories and I was banned from uploading for a week. Never knew the word "dirty" was taboo in descriptions...it was only a PG- fic, too. Anyway, I love how people predict me...how soon you shall be corrected. Sorry if Yuna gets a tiny bit OOC here, but I was always annoyed with how silent she was in the game anyway.  
  
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Chapter 2 - Eyes Lie  
  
Rikku plodded through the snow back to camp as slowly as she could. She didn't want to face Auron or the others, but she knew Yuna would worry, so she had to return. She entered the clearing and scrambled into her tent as quickly as she could to escape notice. The laughter of her fellow guardians and summoner could be heard outside as they ate, but she found her appetite to be amiss. Her mind kept straying to Auron. He was always the strong one, never needing comforting or healing unless it was a serious wound. Even then, he never really accepted much help, save a potion here or there. Between herself, Wakka and Tidus, they expressed enough emotion to cover for Auron's lack of it...but she never thought he could be hiding something so simple.  
  
/So he's lonely...big deal. It's none of my business what he does in his spare time./  
  
After the campfire had been doused, Yuna peeked into the tent to find Rikku staring up at the canvas. "Rikku? Are you ok?" she asked, securing the entrance before untying her bow and preparing for the night. "Hm? Yeah...I'm fine." Rikku answered, not bothering to see the look of concern on her cousins' face. As Yuna brushed her hair out, Rikku sat up and put her arms around the summoners' shoulders, "Yunie...you know I can't let this continue..." Yuna turned and looked at her, slightly puzzled, "Let what continue?" "This pilgrimage...Yunie, you're gonna die if you keep this up. You get the Final Aeon, and it's all over, you know? How are we gonna feel then? Guardians...we guard our summoner this whole time, only to see her die anyway at the end? And for what? A few years of The Calm? Yunie, your life isn't worth that! If you die, you're leaving us all behind! Me, Wakka, Lulu, Kimahri, Auron, Tidus...." With Tidus' name, she fell silent for a minute. "He's...he's in love with you, you know? And you are too! Are you going to just throw all that away?!" She looked up, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes, to find Yuna spellbound by the outpour of emotions coming from the Al Bhed. "Rikku...I-" Yuna held her hand up and wiped at the tears that now flowed down her own face. "It's my duty as a summoner...I chose this path. I knew what it meant, and I still do. But it's my job to being peace to Spira, just as it was for my father." "What about Tidus? How do you think he feels?" Rikku asked, her voice quivering as the damp trails on her cheeks grew longer. Yuna sighed, "I know how he feels...same as you...I don't want to die, either, but that's a summoner's duty. Summon the Final Aeon, bring The Calm to Spira. Rikku, can we just drop the subject? Zanarkand is on the other side of Gagazet...and I want to spend this time happily." Yuna smiled and hugged her cousin before going back to preparing for bed. Rikku sighed, knowing that there was nothing she could say to get her to discontinue the journey at hand. "I'll think of something..." she muttered.  
  
  
  
Later that night, Rikku found herself laying awake, still thinking of that afternoon.  
  
/Tysh ed...why can't I get him out of my mind? Am I a pervert? No, he's the pervert.../  
  
Finally, she poked Yuna and roused her from her sleep. "Yunie?" "Mm? Rikku...wha?" Yuna mumbled, not bothering to open her eyes. "About Auron...is he...ok?" Rikku questioned, not wanting to be obvious. Yuna's eyes slowly opened and focused on the darkness where Rikku's voice came from. "What do you mean? We've been in camp...of course he's ok. The last fiends were back a couple thousand yards." With that, she yawned and turned over. "No, I mean mentally...he hides so much from us...is there something I should know?" Yuna's eyes opened again as she thought this one over. Auron did hide a lot of things...she trusted him because he was a guardian of her father, not because she REALLY knew him like she did Wakka and Lulu. "I...don't know. He never talks about himself...and father never mentioned anything. He's safe, because he guarded my father, and he left Auron to take care of me when he completed his pilgrimage." "Yeah, guess you're right..." Rikku knew she wasn't going to get answers this way.  
  
  
  
The next morning, she got up early. Auron was always the first one up, and she wasn't going to let herself lose any more sleep pondering her fellow guardians habits. She was going to understand him once and for all. Rikku wandered around the snowy peaks for a while, the white powder crunching slightly underneath her feet. Looking up, she saw the sun rise over the mountaintop and cast the entire area into a glittering blanket of snow and sunlight. A dark shadow moved across a nearby peak and she turned in that direction. "Auron?" she questioned, but no answer. Suddenly, a high- pitched screech echoed through the area as a Grat materialized into the clearing. Rikku found herself surrounded by the rocky cliffs on three sides, with the fiend blocking her only means of escape. Snapping the claws out on her Hot Knuckles, she charged forward and slashed, managing to catch a small chunk from its left side. The Grat wiggled and shot out a huge seed, giving Rikku a direct hit to the stomach. She rolled to the ground, curling into the fetal position and coughing out a small amount of blood. As the fiend edged closer, she moaned and tried to dig a potion out from her pocket, but the throbbing sensation in her stomach allowed her no movement. As consciousness became harder for her to grasp, Rikku let out a few ragged breaths before the world went black.  
  
As the Grat closed in for a final hit, Auron made his way to the cliff above. The Al Bhed was unconscious and about to lose completely. He unhooked his sword from its ties and jumped down, running the fiend straight through from above. A burst of pyreflies and there was nothing left, save a little slime on the blade. He lay down his weapon and released a Hi-potion on the girl, letting its swirling light enter her stomach and heal the internal injuries. One jade eye slowly slid open as Rikku fought her way back into the living world. "A-Aur…on…?" she mumbled, smiling a bit at the warm feeling the potion left on her stomach. He nodded and stood, securing his sword to his back once more and helping the girl to her feet. "Thank you…" she mumbled, beginning to regain her strength again. She picked up her weapon and secured the claws back into the glove, making sure that everything was in order again.  
  
"Rikku, what exactly did you see the other day?" Auron questioned, his gaze focused beyond her face. "N-nothing!" she stammered, blushing at his query. He grunted and slid the sphere from its place inside his robe, placing it on the ground between them as the blue light began to flow from the top. She turned her head, "I...don't want to see that..." she whispered. "Neither did I...but it was a part of our lives. I watch it because I don't want to lose sight of what we work for." Rikku stared at the older guardian, completely puzzled.  
  
/A part of our lives? What the hell?/  
  
Finally, she glanced down at the sphere to find a miniature Kilika as it was being destroyed by Sin. Bodies lay everywhere, pieces of wood that once made up houses floated gently on the water, which was tinted a slight red. Her mouth fell open as the sphere showed the wreckage from several of their other encounters with Sin. Suddenly, Home appeared before her eyes and her eyes swelled with tears. She shot a hand out to an image of several Al Bhed, dying on the floor of the main hall. Her arm passed harmlessly through the illusion as she clawed at the air. Sobbing, she fell back and cried into her gloved hands. "Rusa (home)..." she sobbed, "Why did you record these things? Is this to torture me? I...I thought I had you figured out...and now you spring this on me! You're not a pervert, you're a morbid bastard!" Rikku ran off past Auron and into the fog beyond, leaving a very confused swordsman to contemplate her words.  
  
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I was reading the comments and laughing. O ye of little faith...I may be a pervert at times, but I'm an original pervert. I, too, got sick of the "Auron whacks off to a sphere" stories and decided to do my own take on the whole sphere idea. They were used as cameras, so yes, you could record porn on them. But come on, this is Auron...if he were going to have a sphere, he would have had one with something a little more meaningful than Yuna getting boned by an Aeon and Tidus (yes, I actually read a fic with that somewhere). So for those of you who ranted on that, I'm sorry to have caused you to think I'd sink that low. 


	3. Diversions

Notes: Thanks to the people who commented on Chapter 2...it restored my faith in my ability to write a FFX fanfic. And so, Chapter 3 is dedicated to you three...because if I didn't get those nice comments, I probably would've just scrapped the whole thing. Who says feedback doesn't matter? I love it ^_^  
  
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Chapter 3 - Diversions  
  
Rikku had avoided Auron as much as she could during the past few weeks. Seymour was finally out of the picture and now, it was down to Sin. Lulu had somehow come across information regarding "Celestial Weapons" that could be obtained for each member and that was now the main focus of the group. Sin wasn't going anywhere, and it seemed to be backing off for the time being, so Yuna decided that the party should concentrate on powering up for the inevitable. That was easy for her to say, she had the Nirvana already powered up as her Moon Crest and Sigil were simple to find. She lay back in the soft grass of the Calm Lands and watched as Tidus sped past on a chocobo, clumsily dodging birds while trying to gather balloons. He smacked into bird after bird, eliciting a pitiful cry from his mount with each strike. The Al Bhed couldn't help but laugh, but she felt a little guilty finding pleasure in the suffering of the innocent animal. Tidus approached the group with his head hung low, "9 seconds...my best time is 9 seconds! How the hell am I supposed to beat 0? That other trainer is crazy!" Yuna giggled as Wakka put a friendly arm around the blonde's shoulders, "Ey, just keep working at it and you'll get better, ya? At least you don't need to play game after game of Blitzball to get your Sigil. The rest of the Aurochs are ready to kill me for all the games I've been making them play. I haven't even won my third limit break yet...how am I ever gonna get my Sigil, huh?" Lulu cast a stern glance at both of them, "You two have nothing to complain about. Try dodging 200 lightning bolts in the Thunder Plains. Now THAT is a true test of patience." "Yeah, and who's doing all the dodging? Not you!" Tidus muttered, running a hand through his hair, which wouldn't settle down into place since their last attempt at the Venus Sigil.  
  
"We've worked at Tidus' Sigil long enough now...we're heading to Macalania Woods. We're low on Speed spheres and Kihmari needs to finish catching his butterflies." Auron commanded, standing and securing his Masamune to his back. The others stood silently and followed to the save sphere where they boarded the airship. Rikku ran up the deck and hugged her father as she did every time they returned. This practice wasn't merely routine; she had no clue when would be the last time she might see him ever again. She walked over to Brother and gave him the plans to Macalania Woods and a grateful pat on the back. The ship flew silently through the air, making the journey from the Calm Lands to Macalania Woods in the blink of an eye. She waved goodbye to her family as the save sphere brought her back down to the middle of the shining forest. Kihmari had already wandered off to pursue the blue butterflies and Tidus and Yuna were missing as well. Rikku smirked, she knew this was their special place...it held a lot of meaning for the unofficial couple. She was left to make camp with Lulu, Wakka, and Auron, who had already picked out the location. The glittering soil crunched beneath her feet as she made her way over to the other three. After assisting Lulu in pitching the women's tent, Rikku ran off to gather firewood for the night. Wakka watched the small girl run off and cast a worried glance into the darkened path she took. "Eh, Sir Auron...you think she should be going off alone like that?" Auron raised an eyebrow at the Besaid guardian, "Are you suggesting that I baby-sit?" Wakka gave a nervous laugh, "Na...its just...ah never mind..." He turned away in defeat, still feeling a little uneasy about letting Rikku wander off alone. After watching the young Al Bhed see her Home fall to ruins, he had a soft spot for the girl and tried to protect her like an older brother.   
  
Unfortunately for Auron, the worries Wakka expressed had planted themselves in his brain and wouldn't leave his mind at peace. Finally, after much inner debate, he stood and followed the path Rikku had taken moments earlier. The path wound itself through the darker and more perilous areas of the forest, a simple area to navigate for a lithe girl like Rikku, but rather difficult for the taller and stouter Auron. At some points, the path was illuminated with faint streams of light, offshoots of the moonflow. The ethereal liquid vapor swirled from invisible cracks in the ground and reached towards the sky, only to be severed by the treetops. As he passed near each stream, he felt the inevitable pull of the Farplane. Millions of voices called from within, telling him to join them in the afterlife and give up his worthless travels. Worthless? He had a duty to Braska, to protect his former summoner's only daughter as she followed in his grim footsteps. After passing a few streams of Moonflow, he ignored the voices coming from within until one in particular caught his ear. The voice sounded strangely like Wakka's and he paused to listen more closely.  
  
"...lu....Lulu..." the voice muttered, the accent obviously from Besaid. Auron's hand reached out into the vapor as if to try to connect with the voice on another level. Suddenly, the Moonflow swirled around his hand and surrounded his body in a faint blue glow. "No!" Auron growled, as he pulled back, thinking it was trying to force him into the Farplane. Suddenly, the voice came to him again, clearer, as if it were in his head. "You know Lulu...you are with her, ya?" the voice questioned. "Yes, what do you want with her?" he replied silently in his mind. "I need to see her again, be with her one last time. You'll help me with that, ya?" Auron felt the control of his body going slack and he fell to his knees, "How am I supposed to help you?" He sank to the ground in a heap as the voice continued, "I dunno how you did it, but you managed to keep a very physical body even after death. So, I'm going to borrow it for a while, ya? Don't worry, I won't hurt it none." Those words echoed in Auron's head as he felt his consciousness being pushed away from his body. Suddenly, he felt as if he had taken a back seat in his own body, he could see, hear, and feel everything happening to it, but had no control over what it said or did. His only communication was to the entity that had taken possession of his form.  
  
After a few minutes to get accustomed to the new shell it inhabited, the spirit stood the guardian's body up, "Now, tell me where Lulu is." Auron's spirit made no comment to the intruder and kept silent as it tried to figure out a way to rid his body of the possessor. Suddenly, Rikku came wandering back along the path, her back burdened with various chunks of wood. "Ah, Auron!" she chirped, loosening the pile from her shoulders, "Good, you can help me with this." The guardian's body looked down at the pile of wood and picked it up without a word. Rikku found this normal as the man rarely spoke anyway and continued along the path. "Touch her and you die..." Auron's spirit growled to the Besaid spirit. The other voice laughed, "Don't worry, ya? She's not the one I'm interested in touching..."  
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Can you tell where I am with the Celestial Weapons? Yeah, damn those three...I actually have Kihmari's finished, but he was the 4th hardest, so I tossed his Sigil in there to get them to Macalania Woods. Plot device, I know. 


	4. Reunion

Notes: I know...I'm really behind on this one. Problem is, I keep getting my best ideas in pre-calc class...and it's hard to jot down notes on a video game AND polynomials at the same time.  
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Chapter 4 - Reunion  
  
Rikku skittered nimbly through the forest, back along the log-strewn path she had skirted easily on the way in. Auron's body, now with its new controller, had an even greater difficulty navigating its way through the overgrown passage. As the form made its way back to the camp, Auron was still contemplating his situation. Finally, he spoke to his possessor. "How do you plan on explaining yourself? Even if Lulu knows that your mind is the one acting, she will still know it's my body." The Besaid man laughed, "You really don't know much about life after death, ya? Your body isn't really physical, even though you can feel pain and stuff. The living think you're real, too...they can see you, feel you...just like anyone else. But, since you're dead, your body is too...and since I'm dead, I can alter it to fit my needs. You see what I'm getting at, ya?" The comment was almost comically cut off by Wakka's screaming of "Chappu!" as the body emerged from the forest path. He dropped the bucket of water he was holding and ran over to the man, grabbing him in a tight bear hug. "It's really you, ya? Chappu...my little bro!"  
  
"Chappu? You're Wakka's dead brother?" Auron questioned. "Ya, who'd you think I was?" Chappu replied to Auron, "You really are dense when it comes to your fellow guardians. I know everything about you...when Lulu visits, she keeps me informed about everything going on." By this time, Wakka's yelling had alerted Kimhari and Lulu who hurried out to the scene of the commotion. When Lulu stepped out from the tent, she fell to her knees at the sight of her deceased lover. A heavy blue paw rested on her shoulder and helped her back to her feet as her mind recovered from the initial shock. Wakka stood grinning at them with his arm around Chappu, "Lu...he's back! It's really him, in the flesh! I don't know how he done it, but Chappu came back!" During this charade, Rikku had stood silently by the fire pit, obviously confused at the entire scene. Finally, she spoke up, "Wakka, have you lost it? That's Auron, not Chappy or whoever..." Auron smiled a bit; finally, there was a sane one in the group who realized what was going on. "What are you talkin' about, Rikku? This is my little brother, Chappu. He died fighting Sin before Lord Braska brought The Calm." Wakka replied.  
  
As if on cue, Yuna and Tidus returned to the camp after their interlude at Lake Macalania. She gasped and grabbed Tidus' arm as he looked at the newcomer with a puzzled look. Wakka just stood there grinning, "Tidus, this is my lil brother Chappu. I told ya you two looked alike!" "H-how can this be?" Yuna stammered, stepping forward to place a hand on Chappu's face. "I guess my will was strong enough to return for a while, ya? 'sides, I had some unfinished business..." Chappu said as he knelt down beside Lulu. As the stunned woman brought her eyes to his, she began to cry, the years of pent up emotions flowing out in the form of tears. All he could do was wrap his arms around her shoulders and pull her close. She clung to him in fear that he would disappear to the farplane once more, but he remained at her side. Rikku broke into the middle of the group and stamped her foot down, "Have you all gone crazy? This is Auron! A-u-r-o-n! He's not Chappu, he doesn't look like Tidus, this is the same guy we've been traveling with the whole time!" Wakka tilted his head to the side in a puzzled manner, "Rikku...I think you oughta go to bed, ya? I'm sure Auron just got lost looking for you...he'll be here when you wake up, I'm sure."  
  
"She...can see me. How come everyone else sees you but Rikku?" Auron asked, secretly thanking the higher powers that someone was still seeing his body rather than Chappu's. "Rikku? That Al Bhed girl?" Chappu's spirit sighed, "Never met her...so I guess she can't see me. The body is only altered by memories. She never knew me, so she would have no way to know what I looked like." Auron thought he had a means of escape, but this only confused things further, "Tidus never knew you...but he apparently sees your body and not mine. Explain." "Heh, that's why you've gotta love my brother...he always helps ya when ya least expect it. That sword blondie's carryin' was mine...sort of a spiritual connection between us now, I guess. He's got my sword, so he's got my memory." Even with five of his six companions convinced the body was Chappu's, hope still remained with Rikku's presence. If he could just communicate to the young girl in some way, he may be able to rid himself of Chappu's spirit and reclaim his body.  
  
Chappu's attention snapped back to the outside world and his inner battle with Auron was left at a standstill once more. He held Lulu in a tight embrace as the others watched from a slight distance. "You were right, Wakka, we do look a lot alike..." Tidus mumbled, running a hand through his damp hair. Wakka had yet to stop grinning as he patted Yuna's shoulder, "Isn't this great? You barely got to know Chappu since you were so young, ya? Now we can make up for lost time!" Yuna idly wrung the water from her sleeves as she watched the reunited couple, "This is all too strange...if he was a member of the Crusaders, surely they would have given him a proper sending. How can he have returned?" Wakka just shrugged it off, "I don't know, and I don't care. He's back and that's all that matters, ya?" Kimhari grunted and walked away from the trio, "Kimhari have bad feeling about Chappu returning. Stay on guard tonight, Kimhari take first watch." Another shrug from Wakka; he was unconcerned with everyone's apprehensiveness toward the return of Chappu. Meanwhile, Rikku sat brooding in the girls' tent. How could they comment on her mental stability when they were the ones all hallucinating that Auron was Wakka's dead brother?  
  
As night began to fall on the camp, Lulu had recovered enough from her emotional roller coaster enough to start a fire so a meal could be prepared. The group, save Kimhari, Rikku, and obviously Auron, had the most light-hearted dinner conversation of the entire journey that night. Old memories were relived and new ones created as Chappu's past bonds with the group were renewed. Tidus forged an instant friendship with his look-alike and became almost like a third brother to Wakka and Chappu. Yuna smiled slightly at the antics of the three, but turned a concerned gaze to Lulu. The black mage sat by Chappu's side, as if almost in a trance, a constant blush spread across her face. Lulu looked up and caught Yuna's stare, causing her to blush more. It was so out of character for Lulu to lose her composure like this, and even with the nagging feeling that the whole situation was wrong, Yuna smiled. With the last few lingering flames of the fire dying to a crimson glow, Tidus stood and stretched, "I think I'm gonna get some sleep...Wakka, you coming?" Wakka nodded and stood up, "I think there's room for Chappu in our tent since Auron isn't back yet, ya? It'll be just like the old times when we used to camp out, right lil bro?" Chappu laughed and pulled both men aside, "I don't know how to say this...so I'm just gonna say it. You guys think I could get some time alone with Lu?" Tidus grinned and nudges him in the ribs, "Ah, I get what you're saying! No problem with us, right Wakka?" Wakka had turned a few shades darker, but nodded, "Um, ya...whatever you want, Chappu. You're the man of the night..." The younger brother grinned and slapped the two on the back, "You guys are the greatest, y'know? I'll see ya in the morning..." With that, he stood and walked back to where Lulu and Yuna sat, giving Yuna a hug goodnight and taking Lulu's hand to guide her to the tent. Lulu's face deepened a few shades of red as the couple disappeared beneath the canvas, Yuna watched with slight amusement until she finally retired to her tent as well. Suddenly, Wakka and Tidus found themselves alone and without a tent. "Guess we're sleepin' this one outside, ya?" Wakka sighed as he climbed into a nearby tree.  
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Oh yeah, for once I know where this is going to go in the next chapter! 


	5. Nature's Confessional

I know, it's been ages since I wrote. I actually sat down and FINISHED FFX over winter break, go me, lol...beat it in under a year. Would've gotten it done in a month or two if I actually played every day...but it was more of a weekend "I've got time to kill" thing. Ah hell, on with the story...  
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Chapter 5 - Nature's Confessional  
  
  
The tree is nature's confessional. Declarations of love have been carved into their trunks, secrets whispered among their branches. The trees of Macalania Woods were no different, including the particular one that now served as a temporary shelter to the evicted Tidus and Wakka. Luckily for them, the normal nightly rain had ceased to come that evening and the branches were relatively dry, serving as a solid, yet unreliable place to spend the night. However, it was their only choice, as they definitely didn't want to intrude on the happily reunited couple...no matter what they were doing.  
  
True, it was the question of what WERE they doing that made the choice of a tree for a sleeping place so unreliable, as Wakka shifted nervously on the branch every ten seconds or so. Finally, as Tidus was jarred from a state of half-sleep for the seventh time, he decided to speak up. "Wakka, what's the deal? How am I going to get any rest with you shaking me all over the place?" Wakka sighed and slumped back against the trunk, "Ah, it's nuttin'...just...I'm worried, ya?" Tidus hooked his legs over his branch and flipped down to look at his companion in the face. "Worried? What the heck are you worried about? I know Lulu can get scary once in a while, but it's your brother...he can handle her." Tidus laughed. Wakka turned away, "I'm not worried about Chappu..." he mumbled. Tidus could've sworn he saw the other man's face flush red for a minute, but ignored it. "So, you're worried Lulu won't be able to handle your brother? Too much energy in your family, is that it?" He grinned and chuckled a bit, causing Wakka to flush brighter. "That's not it, you idiot!" he growled, slamming his fist into Tidus' branch and sending him crashing to the ground.  
  
Landing with an audible thud, Tidus sat up on the forest floor holding his head. "Ow! Man, what didja do that for? I was kidding! Sheeh..." Wakka jumped down and sat next to Tidus, leaning against the base of the tree. "Sorry, it's just...I'm not comfortable with all this." he mumbled, running a hand through his hair. Tidus scooted next to him and leaned back against the tree, "You're in love with Lulu, aren't you?" Wakka stared at him; Tidus was a true blonde, but once in a while he would put all the pieces together and come up with a true insight. In this case, he hit the nail on the head, and Wakka was worried that he was actually transparent enough to let this secret show through. Tidus grinned a little, "I knew it! And now you're worried that Chappu's return is just going to screw up any chance you had with her. She'll forget all about you and go back to being obsessed with him! And you don't want to be left out in the col-" Wakka clamped a hand over Tidus' mouth, "Shh! You wanna go waking everyone else up? Keep quiet about it, ya?" He signed again and looked up at a patch of sky peeking through the canopy. "Ya...I am in love with her. I just couldn't handle seeing her so heartbroken over my brother's death. I promised him I'd protect her...guess I took that vow a little too seriously now, ya? But, she's Chappu's woman now...always was..." The Besaid man stretched out, placing his arms behind his head, and drew in a long breath. "It's not like I can do anything about it...she's happy with Chappu...let them have their happiness. I'm happy, too, to have my brother back..."  
  
As Wakka drifted off to sleep, Tidus sat there letting this new information soak into his head. The "brother and sister" relationship he had noticed between Wakka and Lulu was really more complex than he thought. A quick glance over to their former tent showed little more than blurry shadows that grew weaker with the dying fire. Not that Tidus was looking for a free show or anything, but he WAS curious as to what they were doing in there. Was is just idle talk, or were Lulu and Chappu really that involved when he was alive? It was sort of a situation that paralleled his own...there was Wakka, in love with a woman who was already bound to another. In Wakka's case, his love interest was bound to another man, not the fate of the world, like Yuna. Still, he had total sympathy for his comrade. Love triangles are tough to handle...especially when family gets involved.  
  
Meanwhile, in another tent, Rikku was just as restless as Wakka, stirring about and flipping around in her sleeping bag. Yuna mumbled and poked Rikku in the back, "Is everything ok?" Rikku sat up and nearly screamed at her cousin, "Of course everything's not ok! Auron is over there, doing god knows WHAT to Lulu, while all of YOU think he's Wakka's dead brother! Dead! Do you hear me? Chappu is dead! That's AURON!" Yuna sat up and clamped a hand over the screaming Al Bhed's mouth, trying to drown out her hysterics. "Shh! Do you want to wake everyone up?" Yuna whispered, trying to hold her back, "You need to get over Sir Auron. He'll be fine, he's probably just keeping watch on the outskirts of the camp, that's all. Now, try to get some sleep and stop worrying about Lulu...Chappu's a nice guy, he won't make her do anything she doesn't want to." Rikku huffed and glanced out toward the adjacent tent, watching the shadows inside shift slightly. "I don't know what's wrong with you, or Tidus, or Kihmari, or Wakka, or even Lulu...but I know one thing...that is NOT Chappu, and I'll prove it!"  
  
Before Yuna could react, Rikku was standing and out of the tent, heading toward the other one. She threw open the flap to find a half naked Lulu being embraced by Auron...or at least Auron's body. Lulu looked up and growled, "Rikku! Get out of here, NOW." Rikku ignored the black mage and grabbed Auron's shoulder, pulling him from the tent. "Just what the HELL do you think you're doing? If anyone should be putting the moves on Lulu, it's Wakka, not you!" she shouted, pointing a finger at the exact spot where Wakka used to be, before he dove into the bushes. Yuna caught up to her cousin, grabbed her arm, and began to drag her back to the tent. "Chappu, forgive me...I'll try to keep her under control from now on" Yuna muttered as she tried to restrain Rikku. "That's not Chappu, that's AURON! Can't you people see?!" Rikku protested as she was dragged back to the tent, "You're all sick, playing this kind of sick joke on me! This isn't fair! I know Auron when I see him!"  
  
Inside his own mind, Auron's spirit floated, detached from the real world except for sight and sound. He saw Rikku, screaming in his defense...she knew it was his body, but she thought it was still his spirit in control. At least he still had one thing going in his favor, she knew that the body was not Chappu's.   
  
/If I could only communicate to her...to let her know it's not me controlling my body…maybe I'd have a chance.../  
  
His only choice at this time was to sit back and formulate a plan. His soul was detached from what was left of his physical being, so he could come and go as he pleased. Unfortunately, any step outside his shell would leave him vulnerable to the pull of the moonflow, trails of which sprung from the ground all over Macalania Woods. He was going to have to wait until the party moved on to the Calm Lands before he could try any out of body travel. Auron closed off his senses to the sight and sound of what his body was doing at the moment. Lulu was not of any romantic interest to him, and he felt it unnecessary to intrude on his possessor's misconduct while borrowing his form. The night was going to be long, and trying, but he was resolved to figure out a plan before the party left the woods in the morning.  
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Next time the muse strikes, I DO know what I'm going for next...promise! 


	6. Mirror to the Heart

Notes: Ok, it's official; I'm in a complete FFX obsession. Not only did I buy Tidus' jewelry set, but also I decided to cosplay as Lulu AND made an FFX music video to "Losing my Religion" by REM. Yep, just can't wait to see what FFX-2 brings in November.  
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Chapter 6 - Mirror to the Heart  
Auron watched through borrowed eyes as Yuna flopped down on the grassy hill the group was standing on. She looked up to the sunny skies and smiled like she hadn't a care in the world, one of those innocent smiles that had been absent from her face ever since she became devoted to her task as summoner. Tidus joined her and that smile slowly turned from sheer happiness to a mixture of joy and love. The guardian watched as his summoner curled up next to Jecht's son; he couldn't remember the last time he had seen Yuna this happy. His odd inner monologue was being prompted by his desire to cut himself off from what his physical being was occupied with at the present moment. Chappu was apparently a very physical person in his life, and was making no attempt to change that fact even while using Auron's form. Auron had no business with how often he had his arms wrapped about Lulu's shoulders, or otherwise, he tried to obscure those feelings from his mind by keeping a constant dialogue running with himself about what else was going on with the party.   
  
Kihmari seemed rather unconcerned with everything, neither Tidus and Yuna's frolicking nor Lulu and the supposed Chappu's innocent groping could annoy him. As long as Yuna was safe, he was pleased. Wakka on the other hand looked absolutely miserable, not only from lack of sleep but also from the inner turmoil he was going through with the return of Chappu. He had on his best carefree grin, however, in an attempt to hide it all, and so far it had worked pretty well. Now there was Rikku, the only person left that was semi-aware of the situation. She at least knew that it wasn't Chappu that was feeling up on Lulu every five seconds. Unfortunately, she thought that Lulu's suitor was himself...and apparently she was none too pleased that no one believed her. Luckily, Auron believed that was all to change that night once they were settled down. The plan was to manifest his spirit outside the body he currently shared with Chappu's spirit and communicate to Rikku in some way. He had a vague idea of how to will himself out of the current shell, but whether or not he could communicate without a vessel of some sort was another problem. Luckily, it was a new moon that night and the pull of the Moonflow wouldn't be as strong as it normally was, so out of body travel would be much less strenuous.  
  
The nightly campfire was down to a few glowing embers as the party retired to their respective tents. Tidus and Wakka were lucky enough to have procured an extra tent from a nearby merchant so that Lulu and Chappu could have the one to themselves. As Chappu's focus moved on to other, more pressing matters, Auron took that opportunity to break free from the body and pass his spirit outside the tent. Unseen by all, he moved silently to the girls' tent where he found Yuna already asleep and Rikku sitting up taking the feather ornaments from her hair. He paused a moment as she shook it loose, letting the soft blonde strands float about her face. It was this moment that he saw a new side of Rikku. She was no longer the hyperactive child of the group; she had a more mature look to her. Suddenly, Auron realized what he was seeing; the look of worry that had gradually taken over her expression had made her lose her childlike innocence. It was an interesting development and it disturbed him in a way he couldn't quite put a finger on. Not as if he had one to put on anything at the moment, as his free spirit still floated inside the tent. When he finally came to realize that he couldn't communicate to her in his current state, he did the only thing he could think of. Slowly, he reached out and touched her shoulder while imagining he had a hand to do so. She shivered a bit and lay down to cover up, letting herself drift off quickly into sleep. He concentrated hard on assuming a physical form, any sort of body that could alert her to his presence. Auron's spirit surrounded her sleeping figure, lightly shaking her and trying to arouse any sort of response. Finally, he leaned his 'face' toward hers and attempted to whisper in her ear, but without a solid vehicle to come from, the words were lost to the wind.  
  
Suddenly, his spirit felt a pull toward her body, similar to the Moonflow, but less aggressive, more of an invitation rather than a demand. Rikku shifted slightly and mumbled in her slumber. A dream. She had entered the state of dreaming and Auron knew that this was the time when humans were most open to outside influence of the mind. He slowly moved toward her, imagining laying his body next to hers as his will began to merge with her sleeping mind. Suddenly, he found himself back in a physical form identical to his own, standing in Macalania Woods. He walked through the forest to find Rikku sitting on a fallen tree trunk, looking quite peaceful. Auron walked over and sat next to her, placing a hand on either shoulder and turning her gaze toward him. "Rikku, you have to listen to me, this is very important. I-" She put a finger to his lips and silenced him, "I know...you don't have to say anything. I feel the same way as you do..." With that, she leaned over and kissed him gently. Shocked, he sat there for a second before recovering his original purpose, "Look, I didn't want to interfere with whatever dream you were having, but you must listen. I am Auron; that Auron that you see all over Lulu, that is Chappu, or rather, his spirit. His desire to return to Lulu and his brother caused his spirit to become restless. He chose my body to possess and he's using it now to be with Lulu and Wakka. I don't know how long he plans on keeping this up, but until I figure out how to get control of my body again, you have to believe that it's his spirit controlling it, and I have nothing to do with it." Rikku looked lost, "So, it's not you with Lulu? It really is that Chappy guy or whatever? You're not in love with her?" Auron shook his head, "No, it's Chappu's spirit that controls my body...you just can't see what the others do because you never met him. He's manipulating my body to show his own form, but only those that remember what he look like will see it that way. You don't see him, you see me, and that's why you're the only person who can help. You just have to keep remembering that I'm not the one making the moves on Lulu, I've never held her in that regard."  
  
Rikku smiled a little and hugged him, "I believe you Auron...," she mumbled close to his ear. He sat there, not knowing what to do. It was her dream, wasn't it? Not reality...but then again, they say that dreams are sometimes windows into your true desire. Did Rikku really feel this way about him, or was it just because he happened to have intruded on a romantic dream? Either way, it made his opinion of her change more and more, especially as he returned the gesture by placing his arms about her shoulders and pulling her a little closer. Suddenly, he was violently slammed back out into the real world as her dream sequence ended and she stirred, shifting almost out of slumber entirely. His spirit manifested itself outside the tent to find a huge Chimera Brain rampaging through the tents. Kihmari, always on guard, was standing by with glaive in hand, ready to attack as Wakka and Tidus slept on, unaware of the danger. Auron looked back and found a half-asleep Rikku emerging with a near awake Yuna in tow. As for Lulu and Chappu, he didn't want to think about what he'd be interrupting if he returned to his body.   
  
Kihmari did his best to hold the Chimera off as Rikku and Yuna groggily tried to equip themselves. Auron looked around for anything with any sort of fighting ability to possess...and found Lulu's moogle doll. Some sort of spell had enchanted it to life and it had a powerful handle on the black arts. It was also his only animate choice of attack at the moment, so he moved closer and took up residence in the soulless figure. Immediately, he snapped into motion and cast Fira on the fiend, causing it to reel in anger and charge. He was tossed into the air, but landed harmlessly as the soft, plushy body couldn't be damaged by a mere flight up and down. He righted his new form and cast a deadly Thundaga bolt to its backside, sending the Chimera running away in pain. The other three looked down at the small white doll in wonder. They had seen it move on its own before, but they always thought it was Lulu who controlled it, and she was preoccupied at the moment. Rikku walked over and picked it up, "I think...it wanted to protect us..." she muttered as she followed Yuna back into the tent. Kihmari returned to his guard as the girls went back to sleep, a newly animated moogle Auron tucked safely in the sleeping bag next to Rikku.  
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Aww, ain't that last scene just the cutest picture? 


	7. Stand In

Not much to say...just got into a writing mood, and thus, a new chapter appears!  
  
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Chapter 7 - Stand-in  
The next morning proved to be quite interesting around the campfire. Tidus, Wakka, Chappu, and Lulu all looked visibly puzzled as Yuna told them the story of the attack. Kihmari growled at the three guardians, "Yuna in danger. Guardians duty to protect summoner. Kihmari and Rikku only guardians that help last night. Where Tidus, Wakka, Lulu and Auron?" Tidus and Wakka hung their heads sheepishly in defeat; they knew Kihmari had them beat with that one. Lulu on the other hand was a bit more stubborn and refused to admit she was in the wrong. Instead, she brought up the newest topic at hand, which was the current whereabouts of Auron.  
  
"He was with us at Macalania, I know that," Tidus offered, snagging another chunk of bread from the rations bag. A collective wave of confusion passed over the group as each member admitted to not having seen the eldest guardian since he left for firewood. "How could we have just continued on without him?" Yuna worried. "It felt like he was with us the whole time, ya? I guess it's because Chappu came back, we all just sort of took it for granted that he was following," Wakka mused. Chappu quickly replied, "Hey now, don't get me involved...I didn't get rid of him. I never even saw the guy." Rikku glared at Chappu, who still looked exactly like Auron, and was about to begin on one of her rants about how Chappu was Auron and they were all crazy when suddenly the moogle doll, which had been sitting on her lap the whole time, stirred and cast silence on her. Unable to speak, she looked down into its vacant black eyes and heard a voice inside her mind.  
  
"Rikku, remember what happened in your dream...what I told you. It's all true, and now I've taken form inside this doll so I can communicate with you."  
  
Rikku struggled to speak to the plush figure, but her words were still trapped within her throat. She lifted it into the air and frantically shook it about trying to communicate in any way. Finally, Auron cast dispel on her, "But, how? Auron! Come out of there! How can you be talking to me here and standing there?!" Rikku yelled at the motionless figure. The rest of the party stared at her in disbelief as she frantically screamed their lost comrade's name at Lulu's medium. "Um, Rikku...I think you need to lay down for a while." Tidus said, looking at her with concern.  
  
"I'm not crazy! You saw it, didn't you, Yuna? The moogle, it moved last night! It helped us with the battle! Kihmari, tell them I'm not crazy!" The ronso shook his head, "Rikku part not crazy. Moogle cast black magic on fiend, true. But moogle not Auron, Rikku wrong there." Once again, Auron's voice came into her mind, "If you want to get things back to normal, you need to play along with Chappu. I am not in my body, I am now here, but they don't need to know that. Just pretend that you agree for now." She sighed and shook her head, "You...you're right, all of you. I just-" she paused, looking for any excuse for her strange behavior. "I...must have...gotten too close to Sin in the last battle and gotten some of the toxin. Yeah! That's it! Sin's toxin, just like Tidus. I'm feeling better now, though." The others watched skeptically as she stood up and smiled, taking the moogle doll with her as she wandered off toward a nearby hill.  
  
That night, Tidus approached Yuna while Wakka and Kihmari cleaned up and Chappu headed off to his usual nightly activities with Lulu. "Yuna, I'm worried about her...this just isn't like Rikku to be this weird." Yuna smiled a little, "You heard what she said, it was Sin's toxin making her act strange. You of all people should understand." He shook his head, "Yuna, I never HAD Sin's toxin...I don't even know if there is such a thing. I truly am from Zanarkand, a thousand years ago. But that's my story...right now, I'm more worried about Rikku. Something serious is going on, it's been too weird lately. With Chappu appearing, Auron disappearing, and moogles moving...I don't like it."  
  
"You have a plan, don't you?" Rikku questioned to the moogle doll sitting on her lap. She had taken up residence on a low hill away from the group. They had decided to give her some space as they analyzed the situation and tried to make heads or tails of the current problems at hand. Auron replied, "I don't know yet...but we need to get back to somewhere with access to a high concentration of Moonflow. That's the only force strong enough to pull him from my body." "Moonflow...well, the best place to get in contact with the other side is the Farplane itself, in Guadosalam." Rikku mumbled, absently fluffing the moogle's collar. "Then we need to get Chappu there. Is there any reason to return?" Auron questioned. "Well...oh! The Thunder Plains! Remember when we went through there, I was so scared that I rushed everyone through? Well, we're sure to have missed something important, right? That can be our excuse!" Auron thought this over for a minute before crushing her idea, "It won't work...they'll think it's suspicious that you, who was dead set against going there in the first place, wants to suddenly go back. We need a better reason." Rikku sighed and laid her cheek against the moogle's soft body, "There's always a catch. I guess I need to research the Thunder Plains a little better and see if there's something unique it has to offer." With that, she stood and began walking toward the blue sphere situated on a podium in the ground. One touch of its glowing surface and she disappeared in a shimmer of light.  
  
Aboard the airship, Rikku greeted her father and brother as usual before taking a seat at one of the consoles. She accessed the map and targeted the Thunder Plains for an in-depth analysis of the area. Cid walked up behind and placed his hands on her shoulders, "Where's the rest of the crew? Are you abandoning your cousin already?" He laughed and patted her back before looking down at the doll sitting next to her. "Aren't you a little old for these things? And what's with the Thunder Plains? I thought you hated lightning." He kept rambling on for another minute or so as Rikku ignored him. Suddenly, she jumped up, "The Venus Sigil! That's it! Thanks pop!" She ran back to the teleport sphere and disappeared before Cid could comment. "That girl...she's too much." he muttered, looking toward Brother. "E hajan ihtancduut ran," Brother mumbled.  
  
Rikku ran down toward the camp, which was close to being closed up for the night. "Everyone! I found it! The last sigil! Lulu, we still need your Venus Sigil!" Lulu looked up from the fire she was creating, "We know that, Rikku, but it was YOU who kept us from getting it, remember?" Tidus climbed out of his tent with a piece of dried meat sticking out of the corner of his mouth, "Yeah, I was up to a hundred and twenty-three lightning bolts before you couldn't take it anymore and pulled me back into Rin's. It took me a week to get my hair to stand down after getting hit all those times." "Well we still need it! Look, lets go back to Guadosalam and we can stay there while you and Lulu go in and get the sigil, ok?" Rikku looked at the group for approval, her eyes desperate for this plan to work. Wakka sighed, "She's right...who knows what lies ahead, and I don't want Lulu to be unequipped." "No need to worry, brother. I'll protect her," Chappu quipped, wrapping an arm around Lulu's waist. Wakka scowled and turned away, "All the more reason for her to be equipped..." he mumbled.  
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I have a clear picture of the end now, I know what I'm doing! 


	8. True Trial

This one's getting longer than I expected...but I don't hear any complaints! ^_^  
  
And to RukiTheSakeFairy: Oac, E tu ghuf Al Bhed...famm, E ghuf ruf du dnyhcmyda ed! mum  
  
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Chapter 8 - True Trial  
  
Even after all the previous hell they had raised in Guadosalam, the group was allowed back into its cold underground chambers to seek out the entrance to the Thunder Plains. As they passed closer to the entrance, Rikku could hear the distant rumble of the thunder and occasionally see one of the brighter strikes illuminate the nearby walls. She cringed at the sound and clutched the moogle tighter to her chest. The others had yet to notice that she was now the bearer of the doll, since Lulu's embrace was usually focused on a more human interest. As they stood before the opening that lead out onto the fractured grounds of the Thunder Plains, Rikku grew more and more nervous about the sounds and sights within. Another loud clap of thunder caused her to shriek and jump back against Kihmari's furry chest. The ronso placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head, "Rikku should not be afraid of thunder, cannot hurt." Tidus kicked at the crusty ground before them and scowled, "Can we please go in and get this over with?" Chappu and Lulu began to walk toward the entrance when Rikku piped up, "We can't all go, it'll distract Tidus. Why doesn't Chappu come with me and Wakka, Yuna and Kihmari and we can show him around Guadosalam? I'm sure Wakka would like a little time to catch up with his brother since Lulu's been hogging him the whole time?" Rikku grinned slightly as Lulu shot her a nasty look.   
  
Chappu opened his mouth to protest, but Wakka grabbed his arm and dragged him in the opposite direction. "Yeah, c'mon bro...we don't need to distract them, ya? Don't think Tidus can take much more 'o those lightning strikes." The group separated the two lovers as Lulu went off to obtain her Sigil and Chappu to spend some quality time with the rest of the party. Rikku looked visibly relieved that they had left the threat of the Thunder Plains and urged the others back toward the middle of Guadosalam where the entrance to the farplane awaited. Wakka played tour guide as they explored the caverns, pointing out various things to the visibly bored and preoccupied Chappu. As they neared the entrance to the farplane and Rikku chimed in. "Y'know, I didn't get a chance to go in there last time," she mentioned, pointing toward the entrance, "can we visit?"  
  
Chappu was the first to protest, "Ah, I'll stay here...too many bad memories, ya?" Rikku shook her head and grabbed Chappu's arm, "Aw, c'mon! You've got to see the inside, the colors are amazing!" He shook his head and jerked his arm free, "I said no. Don't you think I know what the farplane looks like?!" Against her better judgment, Rikku reached into her hip pocket and attached her claws, holding them before her face. "Chappu, I know what's going on...get out of that body and into the farplane...NOW," Rikku growled, flashing the claws at him. He chuckled and held his hands up in surrender, "Guess I can't beat a little Al Bhed girl with a set of claws, now can I?" He gently took her wrist and held her arm down, leaning close to her ear. "So you think you have me figured out, huh? It won't be that easy to get me to leave, not when I've found my happiness again."   
  
Chappu underestimated the young girl's talents as a thief and Rikku quickly escaped his grasp, doing a quick flip over his head to land at his back. With a good shove, she had him sprawling into the farplane entrance in a tangle of limbs and muffled curses. Wakka, Yuna, and Kihmari scrambled after the scuffling pair as they wrestled around in the middle of the platform. Finally, they detangled themselves long enough for Rikku to recover her stance and lunge at him. With a quick thrust she pinned her claws into his shoulder, eliciting a cry of pain from the stolen body. Holding his shoulder, Chappu flashed a menacing grin, "Beat me up all you want, you're only hurting his body." She gasped in horror as she stared, seeing that her claws had pierced a hole in Auron's shoulder. Suddenly, the voice came again, "Don't worry about my body, you need to attack him enough to weaken his spirit from the flesh so I can get back in there and finish the job myself." Auron's voice rang clear in her head as she frowned in disagreement, "I can't hurt you! You're crazy, you'll die!" The moogle doll stirred and jumped from its place on her back, "I'm dead, Rikku. If I don't go back into my body now, I'll never have another chance. This is the only way...it's...do or die."  
  
Tears welled up in Rikku's eyes as she jumped at the body once more, the claws connecting with the side of his face with a sickening rip. The blood was flowing in several places now and Chappu just laughed. "Destroy the body...what do I care? My body was gone long ago...you're only hurting your friend!" Rikku shot him an icy stare as she wiped the blood and tiny bits of flesh from the blades, "I won't let you play around with his body or my friends' lives any longer! Give Auron back his body, now!" She dove in hard, running the claws straight into his chest, all the way to her knuckles. The sickening crack of his ribcage shattering brought a grim expression to Chappu's face. He looked down at his impalement and turned pale. "You...you'd kill him? Why?" Rikku wiped the tears from her eyes with her free hand, "Because I love him...and no one wants to see the body of the one they love with another. He'd rather be in the farplane than see you use his body to fulfill your self-centered desires." Chappu ripped her arm from his chest and twisted it, pinning it to her back. "Self-centered? I gave my life to the Crusaders. I fought a losing battle to protect the innocent. You call that self-centered? I lost everything I had, and now I got a chance to get it back, ya? You're the only one in the way." He twisted her arm sharply, making her cringe, "Now, drop the weapon and give up...I've got you beat." "Never" she growled, biting her bottom lip to keep from crying out in pain. Chappu glared down at the determined girl, "Feh, Al Bheds...you people never know when to give up, ya?" His hand came down across her cheek, sending her reeling back toward the edge of the platform, holding the side of her face.  
  
She turned from him to hide the tears of pain as her cheek throbbed, but he ran over and grabbed her by the shirt, lifting her from the ground and flinging her toward the other side. Her body flailed in the air, landing to the floor with a thud, causing her ankle to twist beneath her. She whimpered in pain, but straightened to a sitting position and turned her back to him. Pulling two small objects from her hip pockets, she fumbled around a bit to combine the two pieces into a new concoction. She staggered to her feet, favoring her left ankle, and faced him, "That was the problem with the Crusaders, they always stuck to traditional weapons and underestimated their enemy. Don't forget that not all battles are fought with blades and fists!" With that, she tossed the frag grenade she had created and shielded herself from the blast. As the smoke cleared, Chappu lay on the ground, black streaks of gunpowder and burnt flesh covering his skin. His clothing, or in Rikku's eyes, Auron's coat, was charred a sick gray color and was still smoldering as he wobbled to his feet. With a rasping cough, he cleared the dust from his throat. "Nice try, but I'm stronger than that, ya? This guy, Auron, he had a high tolerance for punishment." Rikku growled and dove for her claws, snatching them from the floor and clipping them back to her glove in seconds. "Did you ever think about what this is doing to Wakka? He loves Lulu, and now that you're back, his chances with her are gone...you stole her back. I don't want to see him, or her hurt again...and if I have to kill you again to do it, I will." With that, she dug the claws into his abdomen, pulled them free, and kicked his body over to the edge where the pyreflies began to swirl about. The moogle doll ran over and laid on top of the dying body as the concentration of pyreflies grew around the pair.  
  
Auron found himself suddenly floating in a black void, facing a winded-looking Chappu. He drew his sword and held the blade toward the possessor. "I believe you have something of mine, and I want it back. You have two choices. Leave quietly as you are, or fight and lose. Either way, you will return to the farplane...but I doubt Lulu will want to visit you with your torso severed." Chappu doubled over, panting with exhaustion, "You...you win. I'll go...but, tell Lulu one last time that I love her, ya?" He looked up to the point of light in the void and slowly turned into a glittering swarm of pyreflies. "Tell her yourself..." Auron grumbled as the void slowly closed in around him and he lost consciousness.  
  
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I could end this with one more chapter, but I may drag it out for two. There will be a censored version of the next chapter placed on this site, and the uncensored lemon versions of any further chapters will be on my friend's site (which is listed in my profile). 


	9. Therapy for Weary Souls

Notes: I sincerely lost interest in this story after the previous chapter. I was going to leave it as that, but now that I've received a few more reviews, I realize that we still need some closure. So, on with chapter 9...  
  
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Chapter 9 - Therapy For Weary Souls  
  
The thunder had stopped. It was dark but warm, safe...the scent, somewhere comforting. A mattress beneath, blankets above, and bandages on healing wounds...the battle now over, resulting in neither victory nor defeat.  
  
A single eye fluttered open, the other still inhibited from years of scar tissue. The dim light of a nearby lamp was the single source of illumination in the room, yet it was still enough to cause a moment of shock as the eye adjusted. After orientation to the surroundings, the eye connected the mind to its location. The ceiling it now stared at was that of one of Rin's Travel Agencies. The body lay resting on a soft bed. The body...his body. The mind connected with the flesh, animating it to the point of sensation, and all at once the pain, the fatigue, and the relief hit deep. An audible groan escaped the lips, his once again...Auron had returned to his own body. Slowly, as the built up pain impulses subsided, his mind relaxed and re-synchronized with his newly returned frame. It was only a matter of moments before he was sitting up on the bed, reacquainting his soul with its physical home.  
  
His charred garments had been removed and most likely discarded after they were damaged in the battle. In their place was a light pair of pants, Al Bhed in style, and an open shirt much like Rin was normally seen sporting. As Auron stood, he realized he was not alone in the room; another figure was huddled beneath the blankets of the adjacent bed. He stepped closer and found a familiar shock of blonde hair peeking out from the top. She stirred a bit, mumbling something incoherent in her slumber. As he watched, she began thrashing about more violently, limbs flailing from beneath the covers. An arm managed to connect with Auron's thigh and he finally shook her from whatever sort of nightmare she was having. She slowly calmed down, her mumbles of protest softening into slight whimpers as she slowly came out of her dreaming. Rikku's swirly green eyes fluttered open slowly as she regained consciousness for the first time since the battle with Chappu. She too was dressed in traditional Al Bhed-style clothing, a long shapeless dress that served to cover her body and nothing more. Her left ankle was tightly bandaged to the point of immobilization, a large patch of cloth was secured over her swollen cheek, and her right shoulder felt as if it had been ripped from its socket and replaced in an awkward position.   
  
She pulled back, taking a moment to realize who was standing before her, then a look of relief washed over her face. She saw that his wounds were properly bandaged, large strips of cloth running from his shoulder to his abdomen with a similar dressing upon his cheek. Suddenly, she panicked. What if this was still Chappu? He saw her expression change for the worse and slowly drew his hand up to her chin. She recoiled at the touch, still unsure of who was sitting at her bedside at this time. Sensing her discomfort, he brought down his hand and clasped it over her own. "I don't know what exactly happened to him, but Chappu's gone from my body now. You freed me from him...thank you." Her eyes welled with tears and she collapsed against Auron's chest, sobbing into the blanket she held before her face. "I was so worried," she cried, "that we'd never get you back. If you weren't with us...I don't know what-" He held up his hand and silenced her, "You all would have continued on without me. I am a guardian, nothing more. Yuna and the others are strong enough to continue, as are you." She shook her head, "I'm not strong enough...I depend on you, Auron."  
  
These last words drove a twinge of guilt and pain into his heart. "Don't say that..." he pleaded silently within his mind. Before returning to the company of others following his death at the hands of Yunalesca, Auron had resolved himself to keep his relationships with the living as sterile as possible. His duty was to protect Braska's daughter and Jecht's son, nothing more. There was no room for friendship, hatred, or love in this mission, as all three would only slow his journey to the farplane to share the news of Sin's defeat with his previously fallen comrades. Yet there he was, sitting beside a young girl who was making his promise harder and harder to keep.  
  
He stood from the bed, "Rikku, I am not deserving of your trust. I failed my comrades once before, and now I'm trying to set things right for once. Having you depend on me...it's another life I have the potential to bring sorrow to." She shook her head, tears flowing freely, "I don't care if you're dead...to me, you're just as alive as any of us. You can love someone even in death, don't you understand? That's why Chappu came back...he loved Lulu that much. It doesn't matter if one of the two isn't living, love is stronger than that!" The word 'love' registered in his mind more than once, but rather than let his own emotions be stirred by those four little letters, Auron hardened himself to the girl's obvious frustration and confusion, as he deemed it. Looking down on Rikku, he realized the poor girl was laying her emotions out before him and all he could do was say no. "I don't want you to waste your time on a hopeless cause, once we reach the end and put a stop to the madness of Sin, it's over. My purpose for existing on this plane will have ended, and I will return to the farplane for good. I don't want to leave here with any regrets." She looked up and wiped the tears from her eyes, "So you're telling me to forget you, is that it? You want me to throw away the months of trust and admiration I've built up? So when you're gone, it won't hurt? Do you think running away will make it hurt any less? Am I going to be just a regret to you?"  
  
He took Rikku back into his arms and held her to his chest. She slipped her arms around his waist and buried her face into his shoulder to quiet her sobs. They sat there for some time, both not saying a word. She understood. She was selfish to try and keep him there any longer than he needed to. After years of wandering as a lifeless soul, kept from the farplane only by his duty to finish what he had begun to fight while still in life, he was on the road to ending his journey. She was an obstacle along this path that he need not deal with, lest it keep him from achieving his own eternal calm. "I wish," she broke the silence, "I wish that I would have been around when you were alive." His expression softened slightly, "I would have enjoyed that...meeting you in my younger years." She laughed a little, "You don't seem that old to me, Auron, except when you lecture us." He scowled a bit before his expression calmed once more, "That is one of my duties as a guardian...to keep the lot of you from troubling Yuna." This forced a smile to Rikku's lips, "Really, we aren't that different...the whole 'keeping the summoner from having to die' idea. But, I hope I don't end up going through what you did..." Auron closed his eye and looked out onto the barren land of the Thunder Plains, "No, you won't have to," he began, "as long as I have a say in it, the suffering ends here." With that, he released the girl from his arms and stood, taking hold of his sword. As he walked out of the room, he muttered to her, "We can't wait around here much longer, time waits for no one..."  
  
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And that, as they say, is that. I've come a long way on how I view their relationship from when I first started writing this. Originally, it was to be a total romance fic and was actually going to become a lemon around this point. However, after much analysis, I've come to the conclusion that they're not a romantic couple, and I shouldn't force that issue. So, it ends on a happy yet serious note...I think this is a bit more closure for the two than just leaving it at chapter 8 would have been.  
  
- Karista N.  
  
February 29, 2004 10:26PM EST 


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